--- title: "There’s Yet Another COVID Strain Spreading" description: "Yet another new strain of the coronavirus called 501.V2 has surfaced in South Africa, prompting several countries to implement travel restrictions." date: "2020-12-23" modified: "2020-12-23" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/south-african-strain-covid-spreading" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "coronavirus" - "covid19" - "vaccines" --- # There’s Yet Another COVID Strain Spreading ![Yet another new strain of the coronavirus called 501.V2 has surfaced in South Africa, prompting several countries to implement travel restrictions.]() *\Image: Pikist\* Yet another new strain of the coronavirus, called 501.V2, has surfaced in South Africa, [*Reuters* reports]() — prompting several countries to implement travel restrictions. The news comes after a separate strain of the virus spread quicker than expected in the United Kingdom, [causing similar travel restrictions]() earlier this week. "This new variant \[from South Arica\] is highly concerning, because it is yet more transmissible, and it appears to have mutated further than the new variant has been discovered in the U.K.," British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said, as [quoted by *Al Jazeera*](). Experts believe that the U.K. strain, called N501Y, could be [up to 70 percent]() more transmissible than existing strains of the virus. Public Health England, an agency run by the U.K. government, now believes it has identified two people who contracted the South African strain, [*The Guardian* reports](). "Both of \[the strains\] look like they’re more transmissible," Public Health England spokesperson Susan Hopkins told *Al Jazeera*. "We have more evidence on the transmission for the UK variant because we’ve been studying that with great detail with academic partners. We’re still learning about the South African variant." "We are seeing a much earlier and much sharper rise in the second wave or resurgence than we anticipated," Ian Sanne, a member of South Africa's Ministerial Advisory Committee, [told South Africa's *News24*](). Fortunately, experts say the COVID-19 vaccines currently being administered will provide protection against the new strains. Ugur Sahin, the CEO of German pharmaceutical company BioNTech that co-developed the first vaccine with Pfizer, [said Tuesday]() that "it is highly likely that the immune response by this vaccine also can deal with the new virus variants." ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()